AT&T Rural Mobile Consumers: Why might they churn?

Details

Because the overall number of mobile subscribers is no longer growing in the saturated U.S. mobile market, service providers must lure subscribers away from another provider if they want to grow their subscriber base. This is equally true for regional mobile operators and national operators.

Many in the mobile industry want to know why mobile subscribers churn. In other words, what specific factors increase the likelihood of churn? How do network quality, customer service, price, advertising and promotions, and other non-mobile services offered by a provider affect subscribers’ likelihood to stay with or leave their mobile service provider?

This market study analyzes the causes of churn for a particular segment of the mobile market – AT&T subscribers in rural (non-metropolitan) markets. All of the results are also presented for a national sample of respondents, in order to provide a comparison between trends for all U.S. mobile consumers and trends for AT&T rural mobile consumers.

In addition to looking at the possible causes of churn for AT&T rural mobile consumers, in this market study iGR also analyzes the recent churn rates for AT&T, the current churning behaviors of AT&T rural mobile consumers and U.S. mobile consumers, such as how long they have been with their current and previous providers, and AT&T rural consumers’ and all U.S. consumers’ perceptions of the network quality, pricing and customer service of the four major operators. The data in the study is based on two web-based surveys of more than 1,000 respondents that iGR fielded in November, 2015 (U.S. national mobile consumers) and March, 2016 (rural mobile consumers only).

Key Questions Answered

What percentage of AT&T rural consumers and U.S. mobile consumers have been with their current service provider for less than one year? More than one year? More than two years?

What percentage of AT&T rural consumers and U.S. mobile consumers have been with only one service provider?

How do advertising and promotions affect AT&T rural consumers’ and U.S. mobile consumers’ likelihood to switch providers?

How do bundled services, such as AT&T’s U-Verse and DirecTV, affect AT&T rural consumers’ and U.S. mobile consumers’ likelihood to switch providers?

How do AT&T rural consumers and U.S. mobile consumers perceive the network quality, pricing and customer service of the four major U.S. mobile operators? How could this perception affect their likelihood to churn from their current provider?

Why do AT&T rural consumers and U.S. mobile consumers who have stayed with their operator for more than one year do so? What, if anything, might make them change in the future?

How can a rural mobile operator get AT&T subscribers to churn away from the national operator?

Who Should Read

Regional mobile network operators

Wireless and Mobile advertising agencies

Mobile service retailers and distributors

Financial and investment analysts.

Table of Contents

Abstract

Executive Summary

Current Churn Behavior for AT&T Mobile Consumers

AT&T Stayers’ Behavior

Stay Because of Good Network and Coverage

Stay Because of Good Customer Service

Stay Because of Good Pricing

Triggering Churn

Recommendations for Rural Mobile Operators competing with AT&T

Methodology

AT&T Churn

Mobile Consumers and their Providers

Current Mobile Provider

Current and Previous Mobile Providers

Drivers of Churn

Advertising and Promotions

Awareness of Promotions

Likelihood to Follow Up

Leverage to Get a Better Deal

Got a Better Deal

TV and Home Internet Services

Use AT&T U-Verse and AT&T Wireless

AT&T and DirecTV

Effectiveness of Recent AT&T Advertising

AT&T Tag Lines

Consumers’ Perceptions of U.S. Mobile Operators’ Services

Ranking of Network Quality

Ranking of Customer Service

Ranking of Pricing

Why Mobile Consumers Have Stayed with Operators

Reasons Subscribers Have Stayed

Stay Because of Good Network and Coverage

Compared to Perceived Ranking

Specific ‘Good Network and Coverage’ Reasons

Stay Because of Good Customer Service

Compared to Perceived Ranking

Stay Because of Good Pricing

Compared to Perceived Ranking

Reasons Subscribers Might Change in the Future

Number of Customer Service Issues Subscribers Will Tolerate

Tolerance for Network Quality Issues

Consumer Demographics

Demographic Profile of AT&T Rural Consumer Respondents

Definitions

General

Device Types

Services

Network Technology

About iGR

Disclaimer

List of Tables

Table 1: AT&T Churn Rates for Q4 2015

Table 2: AT&T Churn Rates for 2007 to 2015

Table 3: Amount of Time with Current Mobile Service Provider

Table 4: Current and Previous Mobile Service Providers

Table 5: Awareness of Advertising and Promotions

Table 6: Likelihood to Act on Advertising and Promotions

Table 7: Using Other Providers’ Promotions

Table 8: Success in Using Other Providers’ Promotions

Table 9: Use AT&T U-Verse and AT&T Wireless

Table 10: Awareness of AT&T Acquisition of DirecTV

Table 11: Likelihood to Stay with AT&T Wireless Due to AT&T Acquisition of DirecTV

Table 12: AT&T Tag Lines

Table 13: Weighted Ranking of Provider Network Quality

Table 14: Weighted Ranking of Provider Customer Service

Table 15: Weighted Ranking of Provider Pricing

Table 16: Reasons for Staying with Current Mobile Service Provider

Table 17: Subscribers Who Stay for Network and Rank Their Provider as Best

Table 18: Specific Important Aspects of a ‘Good Network’

Table 19: Subscribers Who Stay for Good Customer Service and Rank Their Provider as Best

Table 21: Reasons Subscribers Might Change Providers

Table 22: Number of Billing or Customer Service Issues Needed for Change

Table 23: Number of Network Quality Problems Needed for Change

Table 24: Respondent Age

Table 25: Respondent Gender

Table 26: Respondent Ethnic Background

Table 27: Respondent Annual Household Income

Table 28: Respondent Level of Education

Table 29: Age of Children in Household

Table 30: Number in Household

Table 31: Employment Status

Table 32: Respondent Marital Status

List of Charts and Figures

Figure A: Amount of Time with AT&T

Figure B: Reasons for Staying with AT&T

Figure C: Reasons Subscribers Might Leave AT&T

Figure 1: AT&T Churn Rates for Q4 2015

Figure 2: AT&T Churn Rates for 2007 to 2015

Figure 3: Amount of Time with Current Mobile Service Provider

Figure 4: Current and Previous Mobile Service Providers

Figure 5: Awareness of Advertising and Promotions

Figure 6: Likelihood to Act on Advertising and Promotions

Figure 7: Using Other Providers’ Promotions

Figure 8: Success in Using Other Providers’ Promotions

Figure 9: Use AT&T U-Verse and AT&T Wireless

Figure 10: Awareness of AT&T Acquisition of DirecTV

Figure 11: Likelihood to Stay with AT&T Wireless Due to AT&T Acquisition of DirecTV

Figure 12: AT&T Tag Lines

Figure 13: Weighted Ranking of Provider Network Quality

Figure 14: Weighted Ranking of Customer Service by Provider

Figure 15: Weighted Ranking of Pricing by Provider

Figure 16: Reasons for Staying with Current Mobile Service Provider

Figure 17: Subscribers Who Stay for Network and Rank Their Provider as Best

Figure 18: Specific Important Aspects of a ‘Good Network’

Figure 19: Subscribers Who Stay for Good Customer Service and Rank Their Provider as Best

Figure 20: Subscribers Who Stay for Low Rate Plans and Rank AT&T as Best in Pricing

Figure 21: Reasons Subscribers Might Change Providers

Figure 22: Number of Billing or Customer Service Issues Needed for Change